


More Harm Than Good

by bertee



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bakery, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, F/F, First Time, Kidnapping, Schmoop, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-17
Updated: 2014-04-17
Packaged: 2018-05-15 17:59:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5794285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bertee/pseuds/bertee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While ex-supervillain!Gen was used to her shady past rearing its ugly head on occasion, she wished it could've picked a day when she wasn't on a first date with the hot baker who lives upstairs.</p>
            </blockquote>





	More Harm Than Good

Thursdays were never Gen's favorite.

Thanks to her Tuesday-through-Saturday shift pattern, Thursdays were always the middle of her week, a fact which was made worse by the number of pet-related emergencies which seemed to arise on Thursdays. Dogs picked Thursdays to inhale half a cushion, cats picked Thursdays to forget how to land on their feet, and guinea pigs seemed to take great pleasure in waiting until five pm on a Thursday to attempt to cannibalize their siblings.

Today's emergencies had been an eight out of ten on Gen's internal scale but were topped off by an unfortunately timed fire drill and a prank phone call when she was in the middle of checking the teeth of the world's angriest rabbit. Therefore, as she trudged home three hours after her shift was supposed to end, she was not overly excited about the wolf whistle that rang out through the dark alley behind her.

"Hey, girl, where you going?"

Gritting her teeth, Gen did her best to think calming thoughts as she hurried down the alley and back towards the lights of the street.

"Hey, bitch!" the guy called, apparently moving straight from appreciation to anger without passing go. "I'm talking to you!"

Frustration outweighed fear as Gen kept walking forward but she couldn't ignore the twist of anxiety in her stomach when she heard the guy's footsteps pick up. His feet thumped against the concrete as he ran after her and Gen closed her eyes as she murmured to herself, "Happy thoughts. All the happy thoughts."

The footsteps grew closer, getting to her before she could get to the street.

"A peaceful woodland stream," she whispered, taking calming breaths. "Non-aggressive kittens. CSI: Miami. Tacos."

"Hey!"

The guy's hand closed around her upper arm, hauling her around to face him as he spat, "You think you're too good to talk to me or something, bitch?"

"Honestly? Yeah," Gen said. "I generally don't hang out with guys who stalk me in dark alleys and then call me a bitch. Shocking, I know."

"Oh, so it does talk," the guy sneered. "You got a mouth on you, _bitch_."

Gen sighed. He was younger than she pictured, early twenties at the most, and from the clammy sheen of his skin, she was pretty sure he wasn't entirely sober. That didn't stop him from digging his fingers into her arm as he moved in close, a greedy smile on his cracked lips. "What're you in such a rush for, baby? I got all night."

"Ew," Gen said with a grimace. She tugged against his grip but the guy just laughed as he held on tighter.

"Just like that, baby," he said, eyes lighting up. "I like some struggle in a girl." He leaned in, walking Gen back against the brick wall of a building as he taunted, "Keeps things fun for me."

He lowered his head to sniff at her neck, his nose buried in her hair, and Gen tried not to throw up in her mouth as she shoved him backwards. "What the fuck are you-"

He smacked her across the face before she could even finish the thought. It caught her high on her cheek, making her ears ring as she stumbled sideways, staggered by the shock more than the pain. "Jesus…" She rubbed her cheek. "Is this really how you get your rocks off? Punching people when they're not down with you sniffing their hair?"

A white sway of dots clouded her vision but she blinked when she saw the glint of a knife in the guy's hand.

There was only so much that happy taco thoughts could help her overlook.

"All right," she said, straightening up and pushing her hair out of her face, "here's your warning. Stay the hell away from me or you're gonna get hurt."

"Me get hurt?" The guy laughed, raising the knife. "I think you got that backwards, sweetheart." He stroked the flat of the knife against his knuckles. "I ain't all that gentle."

He smiled as he advanced, knife in hand, and that same dumb smile stayed fixed on his face right up until Gen buried the knife in his gut.

It sank in smooth, years of practice driving Gen's arm as she twisted the guy's wrist to shove the blade through flesh. As cruel as it was, she couldn't help but enjoy the shock of outraged pain on the guy's face before his legs gave out from under him. 

She rode him down to the ground, grateful for the dark of the alley around them as she clapped a hand over his mouth and twisted the knife sharply. The guy screamed, clutching uselessly at her wrists, but there wasn't enough strength left in him to pry her away as she leaned in to meet his eyes. "Guess I'm not all that gentle either," she said, keeping hold of the knife. "You want me to stop? Pull out?"

Tears ran from the corners of the guy's eyes as he shouted curses past the barrier of Gen's hand. 

She shrugged. "I'll take that as a yes."

The knife slid out as easily as it went in. Hot blood pulsed from the wound, spilling over Gen's hand and staining her jacket at the wrist, but she let her hand hover over the gash before he could lose too much blood. Power poured through her, hot and shining, and she flexed her fingers as her hand glowed red, making the blood shimmer on the guy's skin. 

The flow slowed, the wound frozen but not healing, and she lowered her hand from his mouth as the guy gasped, still in agony, "The fuck are you?"

"Whatever you want me to be," Gen said with a mocking flutter of her eyelashes. "I can either be the girl who cut you open then healed you up or the girl who gutted you and left you to bleed out in the gutter. Your choice."

"You sick bi-"

Raising her eyebrows, Gen let the blood flow and the guy screamed as the pain ripped through him again. 

"Whoops," Gen said, stopping the blood once more as the guy gasped on the dirty ground. "You'll excuse me if I don't put too much stock in what you think of me. I don't really trust the opinions of a guy who, what was it, _likes some struggle in a girl_."

The guy gasped on the ground, sweating and shaking under the onslaught of pain, and Gen pushed, "What's it going to be, asshole? If you want to die here, I'm happy to let you. Just say the word."

It was an empty threat -- she'd never killed anyone before and didn't intend to start today -- but she'd found that a fatal wound generally stopped people from trying to call her bluff.

"Heal me," the guy demanded. "Fuck, bitch, heal me already."

"Really?" Gen said with a sigh. "'Bitch'? I'm going to need something a little more polite than that."

"Please," the guy gritted out, apparently searching for a more appropriate term of address for the woman who was saving his life. "Please, miss. Heal me." Gen paused, enjoying the panic that lit his eyes as his situation sank in a little more. "Please," he begged, growing increasingly desperate, "don't kill me."

"Better," she said, letting her hand glow brighter as she rested it over his wound. The light flowed out, down into the gaping wound in his stomach, and Gen closed her eyes with a groan as the healing process began. It could go quick, if she put in that extra bit of energy, but after a long Thursday, she could only muster the bare minimum for a guy who hardly deserved that much. 

Beneath her hands, the guy arched, spasming in agony as his muscles, skin and internal organs began to knit slowly back together again. From what she'd been told, the healing was often more painful than the original wound but thinking of the way the guy's fingers dug into her arm and the stench of his breath against her skin, she couldn't help but savor his grunts and gasps as his body repaired itself.

The heat retreated back inside her when it was done and Gen sat back on her heels, breathing hard as her fingers tingled with the lasting buzz of power. 

On the ground, the guy moaned, dazed, in pain and barely conscious, and Gen smiled as she said, "See? Good as new."

"You're sick," the guy gasped, struggling to sit up and Gen shrugged.

"Maybe," she said. "But I'm persistent too." 

Picking up the knife, she trailed it down over his bloody shirt to tap against the front of his jeans. "If I see you here again, if I even hear rumors of you trying this with anyone else, I'm going to aim lower next time." She pursed her lips in contemplation. "I've never tried to heal a severed dick before. It could be interesting."

The guy's eyes widened and Gen nodded towards the end of the alley with the order, "Get out of here."

He didn't need telling twice. Even with the recently healed wound on his stomach, he ran out of the alley like the devil himself was on his heels and Gen let herself drop down to sit on the ground, her back against the cold brick of the wall as she caught her breath. The dark satisfaction in her chest soon faded out to bitterness at her own weakness and she ran a hand through her hair with a sigh of frustration.

Her mental count of 'Days without a supervillain incident' dropped back to zero.

"I ate the last of the casserole," Jensen called before Gen could even close the door. 

"Congratulations?" Gen called back, tossing her keys on the table and shrugging off her jacket. "Enjoy the food poisoning."

Manatee came padding through to welcome her home and Gen scooped him up against her chest, scritching behind his ears as she wandered through to the living room. 

"It was still good," Jensen said. His feet were on the coffee table, Narwhal was in his lap, and a cookery show was on the TV, and after the stress of the evening, Gen couldn't help but find every part of that reassuring. "It's been what, two days tops?"

"Six," she corrected. "Including that afternoon you left it out on the counter because you were trying to find the dip at the back of the fridge."

"Psht," Jensen said, letting Narwhal bump his furry little head against his hand. "It tasted fine."

Manatee purred contentedly against Gen's chest and Jensen dragged his gaze from the TV to look up at them both.

"Jesus," he said, depositing the cat on the couch as he stood up. "What the hell happened to you?"

He moved in to take a look at Gen's cheek and she belatedly remembered the blow she'd taken earlier. 

"It's fine," she said, stretching her fingers to get her power flowing and then smoothing her hand over her cheek. 

From the look on Jensen's face, whatever mark was there healed quickly and he turned his attention to the blood drying on her sleeve. "Is that human?"

Being the efficient murder machine in training that he was, Manatee gnawed happily on Gen's sleeve until she pried him away. "Yeah," she said, dropping to a seat on the couch. Jensen sat next to her and flicked the TV off as she admitted, "I may have fallen off the wagon a little bit."

There was no judgment on Jensen's face as he tucked his legs up under himself. "How come?"

"There was a guy," Gen said. It felt worse when she said it out loud. "He jumped me when I was walking home. I'd had a crappy day and he had a knife and I just-" She sighed. "It was so easy."

"Hey," Jensen said, gathering her into a hug, "it's okay." 

He was warm against her and smelled of both meat and cinnamon, which turned out to be a weirdly soothing combination as Gen rested her head against his shoulder. 

"Not that I'm ever on board with supervillain-style retribution," he said quietly, "but it sounds like it was kind of self-defence in this case. I mean, I'd be freaked out too if some guy jumped me. Sure, I don't have magical powers but there would at least be some panicked punching involved."

"I still shouldn't have done it," Gen said, closing her eyes as the dark tension in her chest began to uncoil.

"No," Jensen agreed, "but I can see why you did." He looked down at her with a smile. "Maybe just kick him in the junk and call the cops next time? Instead of-" He paused. "What did you do to him?"

"Stabbed him in the stomach and healed him really slowly," she said with a miserable sigh.

"Okay, go for junk-kicking instead of that," Jensen said. "Baby steps."

Gen nodded. The guilty tension hadn't disappeared entirely but Jensen's peptalks always had a calming effect. "I'll try." 

Narwhal came clambering over her lap, evidently confused as to why he was being left out of the group hug, and Gen crooked her finger under his chin as she teased, "Someone's needy today. Has Jensen not been giving you enough attention?"

Narwhal flopped dramatically across Gen's thighs and she disentangled herself from Jensen in order to give the belly rubs that were so clearly being demanded. 

"I give him plenty of attention," Jensen defended. "He's just greedy."

Manatee bounded up to settle around the back of Jensen's neck and they petted a cat each as Jensen asked, "You said you had a shitty day? Aside from the whole getting attacked and stabbing someone part of it."

"It's a Thursday," Gen said, shifting around to prop her feet on the couch. "I hate Thursdays." She stroked her fingers through the soft white fur on Narwhal's belly. "How about you? You weren't here when I left this morning -- did the date go well last night?"

"Very," Jensen said with a grin. He swung his legs up too and hitched his sweats up past his knees as he asked, "Although I'm hoping you could take care of the carpet burn?"

Rolling her eyes, Gen nonetheless reached out to lay her hands over the angry red marks on both his knees. The cats didn't react as her fingers heated to red, power flooding out through Jensen's skin, and Jensen wiggled his toes with a grin when she pulled back. "Thanks."

"You know, people traditionally have sex in bed," she pointed out. "Or on the couch. Or literally on any other surface where you won't injure yourself."

"Hey, what's the fun in having a superpowered housemate if I can't make poor sex choices?" Jensen said. "People make threats on my life on a regular basis -- there need to be some perks to balance it out."

He had a point. Upon moving in together, she had briefly considered whether Jensen actually had a heretofore undiscovered power of being a supernatural peril-magnet but soon realized he just had terrible luck.

"You're not dating that professor guy, are you?" she asked. "I'm still traumatized from healing those cane marks on your ass."

"No more cane marks," Jensen promised. "And no professors. His name's Jared -- he just started work at the hardware store across the street."

Sometimes Gen was a little bit jealous of the normality of Jensen's relationships. He got to date shop clerks and professors and lawyers (and dog-walkers and milkmen and carpenters -- the guy got around), safe in the knowledge that they liked him for him. Gen's lovelife, on the other hand, was constantly plagued by the concern that the person she was dating was secretly a supervillain and/or using her for her power.

"Sounds great," she said honestly, letting Narwhal nip at her fingers. "But if you bring him here, no having sex in the kitchen."

"Yes, ma'am," Jensen said, saluting. Manatee made a lunge for his fingers but tumbled into Jensen's lap instead where the petting continued. "Speaking of dating, we got those today."

Gen followed his gaze to where a set of red roses were sitting in a vase by the TV. "Nice," she said. "Who're they from?"

"No clue," Jensen said cheerfully. "They probably got sent to the wrong address but there's no card and they look pretty so I'm keeping them."

"Solid choice," Gen agreed. "You and Jared not at the flower stage yet?"

Jensen pursed his lips in consideration before saying, "Nope. I don't think I've ever had a relationship that involved a flower stage. Unless you count that florist who liked putting rose petals on the bed before we fucked."

"That absolutely does not count."

"Good to know." On his lap, Manatee rolled over with a dopey purr and Jensen petted his belly as he said, "On the subject of flowers, the hot blonde from the third floor came down to borrow some flour about an hour ago."

Gen rolled her eyes. "You know her name."

"Yeah, but you get that happy little look on your face whenever I call her 'the hot blonde'," Jensen said. "Like you're only just remembering how great her ass is and are really psyched about it."

"I am not psyched about her ass."

"Hey, you don't need to lie to me," Jensen said with a shrug. "It's not like ass appreciation is exactly a foreign territory for me. I'm your friend, I won't judge."

Narwhal stirred back to life, clambering up to rest his paws on Gen's chest as he butted his head up under her chin, and she stroked down his back as she admitted, "Okay, maybe her ass is pretty great."

Jensen looked aghast. "You disgust me."

"Hey! What happened to not judging?" She kicked him on the thigh as Jensen laughed. "Why did I get stuck with the crappy best friend?"

"Karma," Jensen said with a grin. "Call it payback for being head of a supervillain gang for years."

"I was only deputy," Gen countered, picking at the drying blood on her sleeve. "But point taken."

Jensen's grin widened as he hooked his feet through hers, letting the cats explore their legs, and Gen smiled back when she asked, "So did you speak to Adrianne?"

"No, I just threw flour at her until she left," Jensen deadpanned. "Yes, I spoke to her. She seemed kind of bummed it wasn't you who answered the door though."

"Really?"

"Yep." Jensen gave a melodramatic sigh. "My life is one of constant rejection."

Gen tucked her foot between Jensen's ankles. Despite his apparent popularity with every gay dude in the city, the fact that Jensen's parents had kicked him out for liking dick still lingered in the back of her mind when she refrained from making an easy joke.

(Rejection was kind of a sensitive subject all around, given that Gen's parents had kicked her out too, albeit for ruling a small section of the mid-west through fear rather than for being into girls. Nevertheless, she could relate.)

"You can't have Adrianne," Gen pointed out. "You have Jared. Don't be greedy."

There was a knock on their apartment door before Jensen could reply. Gen's instinctive worry that it was the cops faded when Jensen all but kicked her off the couch with the whisper, "Hot blonde, two o'clock."

Narrowly avoiding landing on Narwhal (who, like the champion he was, sat cheerfully on the carpet while Gen tried desperately not to flatten him), she stumbled towards the door as Jensen whisper-shouted after her, "The blood!"

"Fuck," Gen muttered under her breath. Pulling her shirt over her head, she tossed it down the hall to her bedroom before opening the door. 

Her Thursday instantly improved with the appearance of Adrianne. 

She was gorgeous, half a foot taller than Gen with ridiculously long legs and curly blonde hair, and the tiny pink apron wrapped around her hips was directly out of one of Gen's fantasies. (Admittedly, Gen's fantasies didn't include her wearing anything underneath the apron but she would take what she could get.)

"Hi," Adrianne said, untucking the bag of flour from under her arm. "I was just bringing this back."

"Awesome," Gen said with as much enthusiasm as she figured was acceptable for a bag of flour. "Just what I needed."

Adrianne smiled. "Your roommate loaned me the whole bag. I figured I'd bring it back when I was done."

"Because I cook so many things that require flour," Gen agreed, setting the flour inside. She leaned against the doorjamb and tried not to react when Adrianne's gaze dipped down to her cleavage. (She'd forgotten just how low-cut her tank top was.) "Hey, you work in a bakery, right?"

"Sure do," Adrianne said. "Chau's, down on Turner St."

"Kind of taking your work home with you, aren't you?"

Adrianne laughed, wiping her hands on her apron. "I'm an addict, what can I say? If you're ever in the market for cupcakes, let me know. I can definitely hook you up."

"I think Jensen would probably smother me in my sleep if I turned down cupcakes," Gen said. "I don't know if baking is a solitary activity but if you ever need a spare pair of hands, let me know. What I lack in talent, I make up for in enthusiasm and/or bad jokes."

"Sounds like a winning combination," Adrianne said, smiling. "I just might do that."

Roused by the very attractive stranger at their door, Manatee came trampling over Gen's feet to investigate. Adrianne's smile broadened and Gen scooped him up to say hello as Adrianne asked, "Who's this?"

"Manatee," Gen said, rearranging him in her arms. He was not a small cat. "Manny for short."

"He's cute," Adrianne said. She reached out to pet him, running her hand down the soft fur of his back, and Manatee tipped his head back with a pleased purr. (Gen may have been a tiny bit jealous.) "Very handsome."

"He likes to think so," Gen agreed. "You know the beginning of The Lion King where Simba's that adorable little cub who gets dangled off mountains?"

"Yeah."

"Well, Manny's pretty much a cross between that and Genghis Khan."

Adrianne's eyebrows rose but her smile broadened. "That's specific."

"Yet accurate," Gen said with mock solemnity. "You long for the day when you can lead a rampaging band of marauders, don't you?"

Manatee meowed in agreement and licked a stray smear of blood off Gen's arm. 

"You're a vet, yes?" Adrianne said. "Aren't you bringing your work home with you too?"

"Veterinary nurse," Gen corrected, letting Adrianne stroke Manatee's head again. "And my work is fluffy. How am I supposed to resist?"

"Hey, no judgment. I'm just glad I'm not the only one failing at the work-life balance," Adrianne said. "Bakery shifts do not make for a thrilling social life."

Gen winced. "What time do you start?"

"Five," Adrianne said, wrinkling her nose. "I get off mid-afternoon but there are approximately zero people to hang out with."

"So you hang out with baked goods instead."

"God, it sounds so much worse when you say it like that." She flashed a smile that made Gen's stomach do a happy little flip. "I swear I don't talk to them or anything. I'm not that creepy."

"No judgment here either," she promised. "You want to serenade your croissants, that is totally fine with me." She smiled, looking as smooth as she could with a murder-cat in her arms. "Of course, if you ever want to talk to something that isn't ninety percent flour, we could go grab dinner sometime? Not to brag but I've been told I'm a much better conversationalist than a donut."

"Show-off," Adrianne teased. She caught her thumbs in the tie of her apron, twisting them in the neat bow. "But yeah. Dinner would be great. I'm still pretty new to the area -- I don't know a lot of people in town."

"In that case, I promise to show you an awesome time until you find someone else you'd rather hang out with." 

In her arms, Manatee wriggled impatiently and Gen let him clamber back down to the floor. Nearly landing on a miniature jack-in-the-box, Manatee hissed in its direction and retreated back inside as Gen gave Adrianne an apologetic shrug. "Probably belongs to the kids on the fourth floor. They're cute but not always the best at hanging on to their toys." 

"I'll watch out for rollerskates at the top of the stairs," Adrianne said, smiling. "How long have you guys lived here?"

"Coming up to eight years," Gen said. She could almost give it to the day, counting from the date she got the hell out of dodge and moved halfway across the country, and as the eighth anniversary approached, she was still kind of bummed that they didn't make sobriety chips for reformed supervillains. "At least that's when I moved in. Jensen was here a few months before that but still had stuff in cardboard boxes." She thought back to Jensen's room. "Actually, he probably still does."

Adrianne frowned. "Really? He seemed so..."

"Pretty?"

"Put-together," she finished with a smile.

"All a front," Gen said, speaking with confidence gained through experience. "He's as much of a clusterfuck of a person as the rest of us. Note the excessive flour donation."

"Speaking of which," Adrianne said reluctantly, "I should get back up there before anything burns. I don't think setting fire to the place would be my best introduction to the building."

"Wouldn't be the first time," Gen said. Biting her lip, she hesitated before asking, "Look, I know it's kind of sudden and you may not actually want to hang out with someone who owns a Genghis Khan cat but do you wanna grab dinner this weekend at all?" Adrianne's smile faded and Gen ignored the pang in her chest as she covered quickly, "Obviously you can just say you're busy. I won't push, I swear."

"I actually am busy," she said sadly. "Which sucks, because my nephew's christening sounds way less fun than dinner." At Gen's frown, she explained, "I have a lot of siblings. Watching babies look betrayed when they get water poured on them stops being entertaining after a while."

"No problem," Gen said. "We can do it another time."

"Sunday?" Adrianne asked. "I just- I don't work Mondays and I figured if you maybe wanted to go out early-"

"Or late," Gen said, grinning. "I don't work Mondays either. Pick you up at 7?" She smiled. "And by pick you up, I mean walk up one flight of stairs and ask if you're decent yet."

Adrianne smiled back. "7 works." She stepped back, lowering her hands down to her sides when she stopped playing with the apron tie. "See you then."

"See you," Gen said with a wave. "Thanks for the flour!"

Adrianne laughed as she jogged back upstairs. "You're welcome."

Toeing the jack-in-the-box back out into the hall, Gen nudged the door shut and allowed herself a brief fistpump of victory before wandering back through to Jensen. 

In her absence, he'd spread over the couch and the cats had spread over him, flopping across his chest and hips, but he held his hand up for a high-five as Gen walked past him.

Unable to leave him hanging, Gen slapped his hand as she headed through to return the flour to its usual spot. 

After successfully landing a date with the hottest girl she'd met in months, it was near-impossible to keep the bounce out of her step and she only smiled wider when Jensen called after her, "Hey, if you bring her back here, no having sex in the kitchen." 

He sounded remarkably aggrieved when he muttered, "If I'm not allowed to get laid near the microwave, neither are you."

When Gen headed out to work the next morning, there was another, larger jack-in-the-box sitting outside her door. 

Given the Cooper kids' inability to hold onto their toys for more than three seconds, the appearance of the toy wasn't particularly surprising. However, the note tucked underneath containing Adrianne's name, number and a lopsided little smiley face was definitely the good kind of surprise.

Fridays were a step up from Thursdays and Saturdays were a step up from Fridays. 

As Gen got closer and closer to her weekend, the number of injured pets thankfully decreased. The prank phonecalls at work were of the heavy breathing rather than the bad joke variety; all mysterious figures loitering in alleyways kept their hands to themselves; and instead of coming home to a potentially toxic casserole, Gen was greeted by a fresh batch of cupcakes when she got back in the evening.

There were some things that didn't change -- when she got up on Saturday morning, she was still obligated to make awkward conversation with another of Jensen's half-naked boyfriends while he fought with their toaster oven -- but as Sunday drew ever closer, she was convinced that Adrianne was having a positive influence on her life.

Unfortunately, when she relayed this to Jensen, he did not seem convinced. 

"Are you sure it's her?" he asked, sprawled contentedly on the couch with the cats and a beer. "It could be my new pajamas. They could be lucky."

Gen eyed his red plaid pants in distaste. "Unfortunate, yes. Lucky, no."

Jensen flipped her off with one hand and patted Narwhal with the other as he pawed at his thigh. "Wally likes them."

"Wally likes everything," Gen pointed out. "I gave him a plain square of cardboard last week and he was happy for about four days."

Jensen shushed her as he petted Wally's fluffy little head. "Don't listen to the big bad supervillain," he whispered to the cat. "She's just nervous about her date." He lowered his voice further. "She hasn't got laid in a while."

"Hey!" Gen glared at him. "I have other priorities besides getting laid."

"Right, right," Jensen said, hands raised. "First make sure she's not part of some international gang and/or government agency who only want you for your powers. Then get laid."

Gen sighed. "I hate you."

"Liar," Jensen said breezily. He glanced over as she went to retrieve her jacket. "Seriously though, you look great." 

Smiling, Gen tucked her hair behind her ear. "The skirt isn't too short?"

"Just right," Jensen said with a grin. "If she is working for a shady organization, you definitely look hot enough to make her question her allegiance."

"My life goal," Gen agreed. Narrowly avoiding punching a vase of fresh roses when she pulled on her jacket, she peered around the door into the living room as she asked, "Did you and Jared actually reach the flower stage?"

Jensen laughed. "Nope, my flower-free track record is unbroken. I don't know where the roses came from -- another wrong address, I guess?"

"Your moral compass is more robust than mine," Gen said. "How many free bouquets can we accept before we're obligated to figure out who they're actually for?"

"Four," Jensen said, apparently not needing to consider his answer. "Once we get to five, we can start feeling like terrible people."

"Good to know."

Her keys jangled as she picked them up and she gave Jensen a haphazard wave as she headed for the door. "Don't wait up!"

"Have fun!" Jensen called back. "Save all your disgusting vet stories 'til the fourth date!"

As stupidly attractive as Adrianne was in jeans, a t-shirt and a tiny pink apron, she was even more gorgeous when she was dressed up. 

Her hair fell down past her shoulders in curls that Gen badly wanted to run her fingers through and as she leaned forward to take a sip of wine, Gen couldn't help but glance down to the dip of her cleavage above the crimson of her dress.

"And it's pretty much been girls since then," Adrianne said, scooping up the last of her pasta. "Don't get me wrong, it's not like I've sworn off men forever but after the whole cult-joining incident with Chris, I haven't been all that eager to get back on that particular horse."

"Hey, I am totally on board with that plan," Gen said with a smile. "Although, full disclosure, I may be kind of biased, what with being a certified non-dude who's currently on a date with you."

Adrianne laughed, licking pasta sauce from the corner of her mouth. "I don't think you really count as an objective adviser," she said, "but if it helps, you are easily the most attractive person I've met in this whole city so far."

Gen could feel her cheeks heat as she reached for her wine. "See, now you've said that, a coachload of Swedish bikini models are probably going to pull into town tomorrow. It's tempting fate."

Adrianne laughed again and Gen leaned back in her chair as she said more sincerely, "But thank you."

"You're welcome," Adrianne said with a grin. "How about you? Any awkward break-up stories?"

Their server swooped in to clear away their plates as Gen tried to figure out how to answer that question. Most of her relationships had been short-lived, ending in her girlfriends being arrested, withdrawn by their commanding officer, or fleeing in terror on the grounds of Gen being a superpowered freak of nature, and even her longest lasting relationship wasn't really first-date conversation material.

"A few," she said vaguely. "I've not exactly had much success with long-term relationships lately. We, uh, usually wanted different things."

"Ah," Adrianne said.

From her tone, it was pretty clear she was thinking about the more standard definition of 'different things', like marriage, kids, and moving out of the city, rather than providing superhuman assistance to Canadian drug cartels. 

Gen opted not to correct her.

"We've all been there, right?" Gen said, as casually as she could. Her skin felt hot as she smoothed down her skirt, her hands warm in the awkwardly sweaty way rather than the magical healing way, and she took another sip of wine as she tried to muster up the necessary courage.

She'd been on enough dates with enough objectively terrible people to be able to spot the warning signs. From experience, she knew it was never a promising indicator when a date asked about supernatural powers, made veiled references to quick healing, or tried to stab her with a butter knife but so far Adrianne had avoiding setting off any alarms.

However, experience had also taught her that, while not disclosing her power immediately could lead to some cheerfully great sex on the first date, it more often than not led to unpleasant break-ups when her previously cheerful sex partner found out what she could do. 

A confession at the start of the meal was a bad choice but she'd found that the pause between main course and dessert was a suitable juncture; it was hard to abandon a meal straight after the appetizer but it was easy enough for her date to duck out before dessert if they weren't on board with Gen's powers.

(Needless to say, Gen's dating life rarely included desserts.)

"I was kind of hoping for a smoother segue," she said, setting her wine glass down, "but I need to tell you something."

Adrianne's eyes widened. "Please don't tell me you're a serial killer."

Despite her anxiety, Gen couldn't help but laugh. "I don't think serial killers usually go around telling people," she pointed out. "Kinda spoils the element of surprise."

Adrianne's smile was back. "Right."

"But for the record, I am definitely not a serial killer," Gen said. "Or even a one-off killer."

"Good," Adrianne said with a nod. "Awesome." She leaned forward, relaxed and smiling and looking entirely unprepared to be told she was dating someone who wasn't fully human. "So what did you need to tell me?"

Gen swallowed. There really wasn't an easy way to sugarcoat it.

"I have superpowers," she said bluntly.

Adrianne laughed. "Oh, what, in bed? I didn't have you pegged as someone who liked cheesy come-ons."

"I- It's not a come-on," Gen said, hating how nervous she sounded. "I really do. You know you hear stories of people with powers being recruited by the government or mistaken for gods or wanted for murder sometimes? Well, that's me." She frowned. "Except for the recruitment part, god part and murder part, I guess."

Adrianne's smile faded as she leaned in. "Wait, really?" Familiar suspicion crossed her face and Gen's heart sank. She'd been through this so many times before. "What can you do?"

"Nothing bad," Gen said quickly. "I can't wipe out cities or lead an army of mind controlled soldiers or anything like that. I just- I can heal people."

Adrianne raised her eyebrows. "You can heal people."

"Not everything," she clarified. "Physical injuries only -- I can't make cancer disappear and I don't hold the key to curing HIV or anything. I can't regrow amputated limbs but I can heal bones, tendons, internal bleeding, things like that."

Adrianne stared at her.

Gen tried for a smile. "Surprise?"

"I-" Adrianne took a large gulp of wine. "I don't really know how to react to that? I mean, I've never met anyone with powers before." She looked at her afresh. "And that's all you can do? No super strength, x-ray vision, mind-reading, anything like that?"

"Nope." Gen wiggled her fingers. "Just the healing."

Adrianne's gaze dropped down to her hands. "Is that how you do it? With your fingers?"

"The whole hand vicinity, really," Gen said. "Lay them on, let it flow, and boom, healed."

Adrianne sat back. "Neat."

Gen did a double-take. "Neat?"

"Yeah." Adrianne's smile was back, albeit more tentative than before. "Like I said, I've never met anyone with powers before, and healing sounds like a pretty cool power to have."

Gen gave her thigh a quick pinch but was pleased to find she wasn't dreaming. "Really? You're not freaked out?"

"It's kind of a surprise," Adrianne admitted. "I mean, you always think superheroes are going to be, like, Batman or something, not the hot vet who lives on the second floor."

"Veterinary nurse, technically," Gen said, relaxing enough to reach for her wine again. "But continue."

"Maybe if you could read minds or shapeshift or walk through walls, I'd be kind of weirded out," she said. "But healing sounds pretty awesome." She smiled. "It's not like you get many evil geniuses building a criminal empire with the power to heal."

"Not many," Gen agreed. Some of the tension untwisted in her chest and she tucked her hair behind her ear as she asked, "You sure you're okay with this?"

"I'm okay with this," Adrianne promised. "I can't guarantee I won't ask you dumb questions and I'm probably going to want a demonstration at some point but I'm good." She smiled, as content and gorgeous as ever. "Magical powers definitely aren't a dealbreaker."

Breathing out in relief, Gen felt the stress flood out of her as she rested her arms on the table. Some of her hopeful fantasies started to trickle back in at the knowledge that Adrianne wasn't about to throw her drink in her face and storm out, and she let her eyes flit to her cleavage again for a split second before saying honestly, "You don't know how glad I am to hear you say that."

"I think I have some idea," Adrianne teased. "Since we're in full disclosure mode about our secret skills, I should probably admit that I'm amazing at juggling, I can quote _Con Air_ word for word, and I'm ambidextrous when it comes to applying nail polish."

Gen blinked. "Juggling."

"I founded the juggling club in high school," Adrianne said, apparently unashamed of her niche skillset. "Balls, batons, knives, cupcakes, you name it."

Gen laughed, relaxing further when Adrianne's ankle brushed her own. "Good to know."

Flicking a stray curl back over her shoulder, Adrianne flashed her a grin. "So, now that we've got the big personal secrets out of the way, what's your stance on getting some dessert?"

As far as dates in general went, Gen decided that her first one with Adrianne was pretty great. 

As far as _Gen's_ dates went, particularly those dates on which she confessed to having superhuman abilities, her first one with Adrianne was pretty goddamn stupendous.

Not only had Adrianne reacted better than almost anyone she'd encountered -- with the possible exception of Jensen, because anyone who was that cavalier about what they put in their mouth wasn't likely to care about some mild superpowers -- but the date had been legitimately enjoyable. They'd eaten half of each other's desserts, swapped more stories about work, friends and odd hobbies, and as they made it inside the hallway of their building, Gen was very much enjoying the hot press of Adrianne's kisses down her neck.

"We, uh-" She bit her lip as Adrianne's hands came to rest on her hips. "We should go upstairs."

"We should," Adrianne agreed. Her leg slid between Gen's, nudging her thighs apart, and Gen's skirt pulled tight across her legs as she rolled her hips forward on instinct. "It's only two floors."

"Three," Gen corrected. She was pleasantly buzzed from the wine at dinner and couldn't keep from laughing at the tickling touch of Adrianne's lips along her jaw. "My roommate's home tonight -- can we go up to yours?"

"Sure," Adrianne said, leaning in for another kiss. "We should probably get moving."

Gen hummed in agreement as she tilted her head up into the kiss. Adrianne's lips were soft against hers, the taste of wine and burnt sugar lingering on her tongue, and Gen relaxed under Adrianne's hands as the kiss deepened into a steady push and slide of lips and tongue. She looped her arms around her neck, burying her fingers into Adrianne's curls as she pulled her in closer, and she pushed herself up on her tiptoes to steal back a little more control of the kiss.

Adrianne's cheeks were flushed with more than just the heat of alcohol when she pulled back and Gen licked the gloss off her lips as she said between breaths, "Upstairs?"

"Upstairs," Adrianne said with a grin.

Cold air muscled in between them when Adrianne reluctantly stepped back and Gen wrapped her jacket tighter around herself as she followed her up to the second floor. She was pretty sure the journey had never been longer but as they rounded the stairs to head up to the third floor, Gen hesitated when she looked over to her apartment door.

"Hold on a second."

Adrianne paused on the stairs. "What's up?" 

Gen frowned as she wandered towards her apartment. "My door's open. I just want to make sure Jensen didn't pass out in a pool of his own food-poisoning induced vomit."

Jogging back down the stairs, Adrianne wrinkled her nose as she followed her back to her apartment. "You know, you really know how to set the mood."

Gen smiled as she pushed open the door. "Let me check he isn't dead. Then I'll get back to setting the mood." She glanced back over her shoulder with a smirk. "The mood should definitely involve fewer clothes."

She froze at the sound of a man's laugh from the living room. "Is that a promise?"

Eyes wide, Gen looked back to Adrianne in panic. It wasn't Jensen's voice and from what she could remember from his fight with the toaster, it didn't belong to his latest boyfriend either.

"Who-"

She clapped a hand over Adrianne's mouth before she could finish. 

"Go," Gen whispered urgently. "Get out before-"

"Ah, ah," the man called, "I don't want any runaways. Lock the door and come in here, both of you."

"Or else what?" Gen called back, more out of instinct than actual good judgment.

"Or I slit your friend's throat," the man said, sounding surprisingly cheerful for a guy who was threatening to murder someone.

The threat in question was followed by a muffled cry and Gen let go of Adrianne as she ran through to the living room. "Jensen?"

As soon as she entered, she immediately upgraded the situation from 'not good' to 'potentially catastrophic'. Jensen was bound to their one solid chair, with a bloody nose and duct tape over his mouth, but more concerning was the guy standing behind him with a knife to his throat. He looked vaguely familiar, dressed in a leather biker jacket and torn black jeans with a row of studs in his ear, but beneath the thrum of panic pounding through her, Gen couldn't place him.

Judging by his yellowing smile, he seemed to know her. "Cortese. Such a pleasure to see you again." 

He glanced over to where Adrianne was pressed against the wall, ashen and wide-eyed. "And you must be the baker. Third floor, isn't it?"

Adrianne stared. "How did you-"

The guy smirked. "I'm very thorough." Keeping the knife to Jensen's throat, he tossed a couple of zipties in Gen's direction. "Put them on her first, then you. No tricks."

Holding her hands up in surrender, Gen nodded. She guided Adrianne to a seat on the couch, thankful that the cats appeared to have scampered away to safety, and fastened her wrists together as gently as she could. 

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

Adrianne looked up at her with wide eyes. "Who is he?"

Gen shook her head. It wasn't the first time a creepy stranger had broken into her place because they wanted her powers. "I don't know," she whispered back. "Just sit tight, okay? I'm probably the one he wants."

"But-"

"Hey," the guy snapped. "Quit whispering or I take his head off."

He pressed the knife tighter against Jensen's throat but as Gen turned around, tightening the ziptie around her wrists with her teeth, she was pleased to see that the look on Jensen's face was mostly one of skeptical exasperation. 

"Really?" she said with a sigh. "You're going to cut his head off with that tiny little knife?"

The guy narrowed his eyes. "You think I'm bluffing?"

"I think you haven't considered the physical effort required to actually cut off someone's head," Gen said, perching on the arm of the couch and relaxing a little now that the panic was fading. Talking down deranged killers wasn't an entirely new field for her. "It's hard and slow and messy and there'll probably be a lot of screaming involved."

Jensen made a noise of agreement from behind his gag, presumably to indicate that he would be the one contributing most of the screaming. 

The guy cuffed him around the back of the head. "Shut up."

Gen held up her hands again. "Shutting up," she said, before reconsidering. "Although before I do, can I ask who the hell you are and what the hell you're doing?"

She gulped when the guy's eyes narrowed further, his complexion darkening to an angry red. "You don't remember me?"

"Should I?"

"Yeah!" the guy yelled, lowering the knife as he took a step towards her. "You send a guy to jail for eight years, you think you'd remember their fucking name!"

The timeframe clicked into place, even if the guy's name wasn't forthcoming, and Gen said levelly, "I sent a lot of people to jail eight years ago."

The guy sneered. "You always were a cold bitch," he said. "But now you're gonna pay for what you did. You're gonna pay for betraying us like that."

"Us?" Gen frowned. "Sorry, man, I still don't remember you."

"Jack," he said, standing up straighter. "Jack Rose." 

Gen refrained from asking if his parents were big fans of Titanic.

He smirked. "I believe you got my gifts."

"Gifts?"

His smile widened and he tapped his knife against his nails as he walked closer. "Don't tell me you didn't know I was watching you, Cortese. I sent you flowers."

Gen frowned. "Those were from you?"

Jack's smile faded. "I left jack-in-the-boxes on your step." He gestured to himself. "Y'know, Jack."

"I thought some kids dropped them."

His smile became a frown. "I called you at work."

"The silent phonecalls?" Gen sighed. "I work with Dr Aaronson. We get a lot of butt-dials."

"I followed you!" Jack said, positively indignant. "I stalked you in dark alleyways! Didn't you feel me watching you from the shadows?"

"I guess," Gen said honestly. "But lots of people hang out in dark alleyways. As long as they don't actively bother me, I kind of ignore them." She gave him a pitying look. "Come on, man. If you're trying for stalker status, you should probably step up your game. That was pretty weak." 

"I expected you to remember me!" he protested. "How could you forget me after you destroyed my life!"

"Hey," Adrianne said, sitting forward on the couch. "It's Jack, right?"

"For now," Jack said, puffing his chest up. "I was thinking about upgrading once I get what I want. Maybe to something dangerous, like 'Black Death'."

"Sounds great," Adrianne lied. "Look, Jack, I don't know what Gen did or who betrayed who but there's got to be a better way to deal with it than this." Her hands shook before she linked her fingers together to hide it. "You said you just got out of jail, right?"

"Sure did," Jack said. "That bitch put me behind bars for nearly eight goddamn years."

"Then I'm sure you don't want to go back there," Adrianne said hopefully. "Just put the knife down and let us go and I'm sure we can work this out."

"And how are we gonna do that?" Jack asked, approaching Adrianne with his knife raised. "Can you turn back the clock? Make it so I can put a bullet in her head before she could go running to the cops?" His eyes glittered as he leaned in. "You got powers too?"

Gen was on her feet and between him and Adrianne in an instant. 

"She doesn't have any powers," she said firmly. "She's got nothing to do with this. Neither of them do."

"They're friends with you so they're involved," Jack said, holding the knife to Gen's cheek. "That was how it worked for me, right?"

The knife was cold against her skin, digging in just enough that Gen couldn't tell whether or not it was actually breaking the skin, and she fought to keep her breathing even as she asked, "You were with Alaina, weren't you? You were one of the gang."

"Sure was," Jack said. His breath was rancid as he leaned in and Gen tried not to retch. "I was only on board for four months before we woke up to find the cops at our doors." He pushed the knife in deeper and Gen winced at the trickle of blood that dripped down her cheek. "So much for loyalty, huh, Cortese?"

"You killed a guy," Gen shot back. "Sorry if I wasn't exactly filled with team spirit for a bunch of murderers."

Jack laughed, stepping back. "And you think you're so much better than us?"

Gen shrugged as best she could with her hands bound. "I never killed anyone."

"No, but you came damn close," Jack spat. The knife shone in the light as he wandered back behind Jensen, tapping the flat of the blade against his shoulder. "I watched you, Cortese. I saw what you did to people. Your power was the only thing that stopped you from being a murderer too."

"And?" Gen said. Her skin prickled into goosebumps as she took a step closer, painfully aware that she was laying out her shady past on what was still technically a first date. "I know I did some horrible things back then but I never crossed that line. Ever. Maybe you think I betrayed you, let you down, whatever but I wasn't about to sit back and let you all go on murdering people."

"So you handed us over to the cops instead," Jack said, cold and bitter. "Bet you think you're a real hero, don't you?"

"Not exactly," Gen said. She watched the tap, tap, tap of the knife by Jensen's neck and licked her lips before asking, "What's your game plan here, Jack? You planning on killing me or just complaining about your criminal past some more?"

Jack's smile was unsettling. "I don't wanna kill you, Cortese. I wanna borrow you."

Gen's eyebrows shot up. "Borrow? Hate to break it to you, champ, but you don't 'borrow' a person against their will. That's called kidnapping."

"Call it what you want," Jack said. His eyes slid down her body and for the first time that evening, Gen regretted her skirt choice. "You know, I had the biggest crush on you when we were younger. You were beautiful, powerful, ruthless… Everything I'd want in a girl. Every time I got the chance, I watched you work." 

He shook his head, smiling bitterly. "I even tried to ask you out a couple of times but you just brushed me off. Said I wasn't your type."

A memory tugged at her and Gen couldn't keep the incredulous smile off her face as her mysterious admirer clicked into place. "Rosey?"

"Looks like you do remember me after all," Jack said, his lips thinning in a tight smile. "I always hated that name."

"You were shorter," Gen said, trying to piece together her recollections. "And you had those terrible bangs-"

"I was young!"

"And that eyeliner," she said, smirking at the mental picture. "You used to hit on me all the time."

"And yet you wouldn't give me the time of day," he said, anger bleeding through. "What, was I not good enough for you?"

"You're kidding, right?" In spite of herself, Gen laughed. "Rosey, I meant it when I said you weren't my type. What did you think, I was just Alaina's deputy? Her best friend?"

Jack frowned. "You weren't?"

"I was her girlfriend, genius," Gen said with a sigh. "I was taken and you were a creep."

Jack's brows knitted and she could practically see the wheels turning in his brain. "You were dating Alaina?"

"Number one lesbian supervillain power couple for three years straight," Gen said helpfully. "You really didn't know?"

Jack's confused frown deepened into a scowl as he gripped the knife tighter. "It doesn't matter," he said firmly. "She's out of the picture and you're still coming with me. You had me locked up all those years -- now you're going to help me get back what I lost." He moved in, resting the tip of the blade under Gen's chin to tilt her head up. "With your powers and my brains, we'll make an unstoppable team."

Behind them, Jensen let out a poorly disguised snort of laughter and Jack whirled around to smack him across the face. "Shut up!"

"He kind of has a point," Gen said. "The whole mass hostage situation thing doesn't exactly speak volumes for your brains. Oh, and there's the obvious fact that I'm not helping you with anything."

"I'll kill your friends," he threatened. "Don't think I won't."

"Well, then I definitely won't help you with anything," Gen said. "What're you going to do, bring Jensen along as a hostage to get me to do every little thing you want?" She glanced back to where Jensen was still tied to the chair but looking increasingly bored with proceedings. "He gets held hostage a lot. We're both pretty chill about it at this point."

"What about this one?" Jack said, shoving past her to put the knife to Adrianne's chest. "I'm guessing she wouldn't do so well with being held captive." He licked his lips as he looked between the two of them, specifically between Gen's legs and Adrianne's cleavage. "Although I can think of plenty of advantages to having the two of you in shackles."

Gen and Jensen made simultaneous noises of disgust. Adrianne looked too terrified of the knife to make any noises but judging from her expression, she was with them in spirit.

"You're gross," Gen said flatly. 

"And you're mine," Jack said, gripping Gen by her bound wrists and hauling her in close. 

The knife rested against her throat and she tried to ignore the pounding of her heart in her chest as he leaned in enough that their lips almost brushed. "I know you're still using your powers," he said, his breath hot against her skin. "I saw you stab that guy in the alley like it was nothing. It wouldn't take much for you to put those powers to work for me instead."

Gen pulled against his grip but Jack held firm as he forced her head up higher. "Now," he said, cocky confidence filling his tone, "you and blondie here are going to come with me, all easy and quiet like, or I'm going to gut your roommate." His smile widened. "What's it going to be, Cortese?"

Behind her, Jensen shook his head and Gen fixed her best smile in place when she looked up into Jack's eyes. "Go fuck yourself."

The punch to the gut that followed was an unwelcome surprise.

Almost forgetting about the knife at her throat, she narrowly avoided impaling herself on the blade when she doubled up, winded and coughing. The kick to her hip that followed knocked her down to the carpet and she groaned in pain as she propped herself up on her bound hands. Jack strolled over to Jensen, knife in hand, and Gen found herself pleading before she could even catch her breath, "No, no-"

"Can't say I didn't warn you," Jack said with a shrug.

He aimed a mocking wink in Gen's direction before driving the blade up under Jensen's ribcage in one swift stab.

"No!"

Blood spilled from the wound as soon as Jack pulled the knife out. It poured down Jensen's shirt, heavy crimson rivulets soaking into the blue of the fabric, and Gen launched herself at Jack with a furious yell.

It wasn't her best attack, given that she was off-balance, distracted, and bound, but the knife at least fell from Jack's hand when Gen tackled him back into the bookcase. Behind her, Jensen let out a pained cry, struggling against his ropes as he kept losing blood, but Jack landed a well-timed punch as soon as she looked back to check on him. 

Gen went down again hard, elbows scraping against the carpet as she tried to pull away and catch her breath, but Jack was right there, looming over her and landing a cruel kick to her side as she fought for air. Aching and breathless, she couldn't do much more than struggle as he grabbed a fistful of her hair to pull her up to face him.

"You should've listened, Cortese," he said, victorious. "We could've done this the easy way."

Plenty of insults came to mind but as she lifted her chin in defiance, she found that spitting in Jack's face was a suitable retort.

He recoiled with a grimace, letting go of her hair to wipe his face clean, and he raised his hand to hit her again as he growled, "Fucking bi-"

A foot connected with his face before he could finish the thought.

Adrianne's shoes weren't all that high -- it was one of the less than awesome side effects of being tall -- but from Jack's howl of pain, even a kitten heel to the jaw was sufficiently distracting. 

Still winded, Gen couldn't do much more than nod in Jensen's direction but Adrianne got the message anyway, springing to her feet and running over to tip Jensen's chair backwards with the goal of at least getting him partly horizontal. The pained groans didn't let up, interspersed with a gasp of "Motherfucker!" when Adrianne got his gag off, but Gen tried to put Jensen out of her mind for at least thirty seconds while she pulled herself to her feet to face off with Jack.

(She was aware that thirty seconds was possibly a generous estimate of Jensen's survival time.)

Blood trickled down Jack's jaw from the ragged wound in his cheek as he circled her with a bloodstained smile. "Y'know, I always wanted to get physical with you. I guess this'll have to do for a start."

Bringing her arms back sharply towards her stomach, Gen rubbed her wrists when the ziptie snapped off. "What is it with guys getting off on the idea of me fighting them? It's creepy." 

Laughing, Jack lashed out with another punch which Gen ducked easily enough. The position left him open and she landed a solid hit to the side of his ribcage, just below his armpit.

"And straight-up inaccurate," she continued as Jack stumbled back in pain. "I'm pretty sure you're not going to enjoy this."

He lunged again, trying the same tactic with pretty much the same result as Gen hit him in the side and then landed a knee to his stomach. On the floor beside them, Jensen coughed, following it with an agonized groan, and Adrianne's steady stream of soothing words grew noticeably higher-pitched in panic. 

Jack's hands locked around her thigh, trying to tug her down with him, but Gen kicked out sharply with her lower leg, catching him in the shoulder to make him slump back to the ground with a groan. A follow-up kick to the hip kept him there and Gen dropped down to straddle him, fueled by helpless rage as she pinned him down and landed punch after punch to his face and chest. 

"You don't get to stalk me," she spat, watching blood pour from his nose. "You don't get to break into my apartment, threaten me, threaten my _date_." She hit him again, hard enough to make his head rock back with the force of the punch. "And you don't get to stab my roommate!"

The bloodied knife shimmered on the carpet next to her and she put it to his throat as she leaned in close. Jack's struggles were sluggish and clumsy and blood trickled from his split lip as he gasped, "No-"

"What's the matter?" Gen taunted, enjoying the flare of fear in his eyes. "Don't you like it when I'm on top?" She dropped down, her hair falling in a curtain to brush his cheek as she asked, "You know what the rest of them did? The ones who got out of prison before you?"

Jack shook his head, eyes wide, and Gen smiled. 

"They stayed the hell away from me," she whispered. "Because they knew better. Because they knew I didn't get to where I was just because of who I was fucking or what powers I had." She traced his jawline with the tip of his knife. "You understand, Rosey?"

Jack nodded, pale and pained, and Gen couldn't help but relish the fear on his face when the knife moved back down to his throat.

"Gen!"

Jolted out of the haze of power by the shout, Gen looked up to see Adrianne staring at her in dismay. Her bound hands were pressed to Jensen's wound but wasn't doing much to stop the blood streaming out over her fingers as his breathing grew more and more shallow.

"Oh, God."

Her last punch to Jack's face was enough to knock him out and he sagged on the carpet as she scrambled over to Jensen. He was still bound to the chair, wrists and ankles fastened to the arms and legs, but Gen had clear enough access to the ugly wound on his torso as she knelt beside him. 

"I don't- He's lost a lot of blood," Adrianne stammered. "Can you heal him?"

"I can try," Gen said, hating the nervous flutter in her chest as she used the knife to cut through Adrianne's ziptie and Jensen's ropes. "Call 911. Get the cops and an ambulance and find something to tie him up with in case he wakes up. See if he has any more zipties in his pockets or go use some pantyhose or something. There should-"

"I got it," Adrianne said, rubbing her wrists as she pushed herself to her feet. 

She grabbed her cell from her purse, tucking it between her ear and her shoulder as she rummaged through Jack's pockets for additional ties, but Gen turned her attention to Jensen once Adrianne started speaking to the operator. 

Jensen's blood was warm and slippery on her fingers as she peeled back his shirt to check his wound. He was pale as he looked up at her, sweat beading at his temples, and Gen tucked her free hand in his as she murmured, "You're gonna be fine. I'll get you all healed up."

Her hand heated as she held it over his wound, her palm glowing bright red as she put every ounce of energy she had left into healing the gaping hole in Jensen's chest. Her own body ached as the power flowed through her, the pain of the punches and kicks blossoming again, and she squeezed her eyes closed against the throb of it.

Jensen groaned beneath her, back arching and fingers tightening around hers as his body fixed itself, and Gen concentrated even harder, feeling the pulse of her power flow faster and faster to avoid making the healing any more prolonged and painful than it already was.

"Nearly there," she whispered, squeezing Jensen's hand. "You're almost done."

She could feel the second it was finished, could feel her power bounce back up against her palm instead of seeping down into Jensen's body, and she sat back, breathing hard as Jensen's lips parted in a relieved gasp. "Jesus fuck-"

His breathing was almost as heavy as Gen's when he looked over at her, still pale from the blood loss. 

"I take it back," he gasped as sirens drew closer outside, "no more accepting free bouquets." He groaned, rolling onto his side and wrapping his arms across the bloodstained hole in his shirt. "That was a terrible plan."

Gen's head pounded as she leaned back against the TV cabinet for support. Apparently satisfied that the danger had passed, Manatee and Narwhal came wandering out of Gen's bedroom to investigate, with Manatee making a beeline for Jensen's recently healed stomach and Narwhal flopping down over Jack's bound ankles. 

After watching Narwhal bat at Jack's laces, Gen's gaze traveled up to where Adrianne was sitting on the edge of the couch. She was as pale as Jensen, without the excuse of blood loss, and her bloodstained hands shook when she clasped them together. 

"I'm sorry."

Gen's throat hurt as she said it, the words scratching as she forced them out, but she quickly regretted it when they hung in the air between them. 

"Adrianne…"

"Don't," Adrianne said softly. "I just-" She glanced from the still-unconscious Jack to the semi-conscious Jensen and the happily napping cats. "Maybe I'll have a bunch of questions for you later but right now…" She shook her head. "I can't deal with this."

She stood up, wobbling a little as she did so, and took off down the hallway to the bathroom before Gen could object. 

Next to her, Jensen gave Manatee an unceremonious shove out of the way as he shuffled over to rest his head on Gen's thigh. Manatee relocated to her lap, curling up between her legs, and Gen petted them both mindlessly as she tried to convince herself that relationships had been salvaged from worse first dates.

She wasn't particularly successful, especially when Adrianne looked more like she wanted to have Gen committed than to cuddle and watch questionable TV, and so she was happy for the distraction when Jensen mumbled into her skirt, "M'gonna pass out now."

"Okay," Gen said absently, stroking his hair.

"Don't freak out about how terrible your life is."

"Okay."

Jensen yawned. "And wake me up if any of the cops are hot."

He was out before Gen could agree.

**+++**

"You know you can stop with the apology food."

"You got stabbed because of me," Gen said, depositing a lovingly crafted grilled cheese sandwich on the table next to him. "Since the likelihood of me getting stabbed because of you is pretty damn low, food is my only way of assuaging my guilt."

"It was a short-lived stabbing," Jensen pointed out. "You healed me, the attractive nurse gave me a blood transfusion, and I'm all fixed." He patted his chest. "Not even a scar."

"But you-"

"I'm fine," Jensen promised. "Except for getting whiplash from you treating me like I'm going to lapse into a coma any second and Jared-" He cleared his throat. "Uh. Jared not doing that."

Between the hickey on Jensen's neck and the broken bedpost in his room, Gen could fill in the rough sex blanks on her own but that didn't stop her from fixing Jensen with a scowl. "I told you to take it easy."

"It's been more than two weeks," Jensen said, picking up the grilled cheese and passing her half. "There are limits to the length of time I enjoy being treated like a fragile little kitten."

Manatee came plodding across his lap, as if reminding them that he was neither fragile nor a kitten, and Jensen tucked him up against his chest with one arm.

"How about channeling all this cooking energy into getting laid?" he suggested, with the cheerfulness of someone who often resolved their life problems with vigorously loud intercourse. "Not that I don't appreciate the food but unless you've developed a fetish I don't know about, I'm pretty sure sex would be more satisfying than watching me eat."

Digging into her half of the sandwich, Gen settled on the couch next to him and tucked her bare feet under Narwhal. "I'm not against it in theory," she said. "The practicalities are giving me a hard time though. Especially when the last person I was hoping to hook up with won't even speak to me anymore."

Jensen's gaze was one of sympathy. "Adrianne still hasn't been in touch?"

"Nope." Gen took a mournful bite of her sandwich. "I know you've seen her around but she's still avoiding me. Plus there are only so many apology texts I can send before it gets awkward." 

Narwhal chewed on the bottom of her jeans as she said, "I mean, I can't really blame her. As traumatic first dates go, that was pretty high on the list, but I just-" 

She waved her hand, fully aware she was pouting. "I really liked her, y'know? We had a good time at dinner and she's an excellent kisser and she took the whole superpower thing really well. I thought the relationship might actually have legs for once." She sighed. "Really, really great legs."

"I'm sorry," Jensen said, reaching out to pet Gen's knee instead of the cat. "It's a big city though? You'll find someone out there who's into girls and superpowers." He glanced at the braid that curled around her shoulder. "And questionable hair styles."

Gen removed her foot from under the cat long enough to kick him. "Like you can talk," she muttered. "I remember your frosted-tip years."

"Anything more than five years old doesn't count," Jensen said dismissively. "I've seen that picture of you from back in the day. Those pink streaks were not a good choice."

"I had dubious morals back then," Gen said. "That just extended to my hair.

"Your ex had dubious morals too," Jensen pointed out. "Her hair was still awesome."

Rolling her eyes, Gen curled up on the couch as she finished off her grilled cheese. She knew the picture Jensen was thinking off; it was the one reminder she had left from the bad old days, showing her and Alaina smiling wide for the stolen camera, but she couldn't summon up much nostalgia as she said, "Affection for questionable hair styles aside, I _had_ someone who was into girls and superpowers." She gave him a tight smile. "She just wasn't into me being a terrible person."

"You're not a terrible person," Jensen said, with enough conviction that Gen almost believed him. "I know it doesn't feel like it but as far as I'm concerned, what happened with Jack counts as a win. I mean, he's in jail, you didn't use your powers on him, we're all still alive…"

"I'm still single," Gen filled in before giving him a weak smile. "I know, I know. Plenty more fish, right?"

"Plenty," Jensen agreed, stretching his legs out alongside hers. "Plus eels, seahorses, octopuses, all kinds of neat things." 

Gen wrinkled her nose. "None of that sounds pleasant."

"Mermen?" Jensen offered with a grin. "Like the hot dad from _The Little Mermaid_. Or the actual little mermaid, I guess, if you're into that."

There was a knock on the door as Gen smiled back in spite of herself. "You have a problem."

"Hey, I'm dating a younger guy," Jensen said as Gen untucked her feet from underneath Narwhal. "I'm allowed to have a recreational hot dad problem." 

He claimed both the cats as his own and called as Gen wandered over to answer the door, "Y'know, I'm still waiting for the day when you develop a sexual preference I can tease you about."

"Keep waiting," Gen called back. "You-"

She lapsed into stunned silence when she pulled the door open.

Even something as basic as a greeting eluded her and she blinked in disbelief when the sight of Adrianne in the hallway didn't shimmer away like a mirage.

"Hi," Adrianne said, already proving herself to be more competent at talking than Gen currently was. "I, uh- I'm sorry if you're busy," she said, inching back a fraction. "I was hoping we could talk?" 

She glanced past Gen into the apartment. "But I can come back if you're-"

"No," Gen said quickly. "No, now's fine. I just- Give me two seconds?"

Adrianne nodded, folding her arms across her chest in a gesture that was clearly borne out of nerves rather than impatience, and Gen ducked back inside for a second as she whispered to Jensen, "I will do all your laundry for two weeks if you leave now."

Given the amount of time he'd spent at Jared's recently, she didn't foresee a problem with Jensen finding somewhere to hang out but judging by the speed at which he got up, found his shoes and headed for the door, the laundry bribe seemed like an effective incentive.

"You know I'm holding you to that," he whispered back as he pulled his jacket on.

"I'd be amazed if you didn't," Gen said. "Go, go, go."

He obeyed, saying a quick hello to Adrianne as he made a break for it, and Gen pulled her hair out of the braid as she opened the door wider. "Hi," she said with a little wave. "Come in. You want a drink or anything?"

"I wouldn't say no to a beer," Adrianne said with a tentative smile as she took a seat on the couch. 

Deciding beer was potentially a good sign, Gen retrieved a couple of bottles from the fridge and sat on the opposite end of the couch. "How've you been?"

"Good," Adrianne said, taking a beer. "Busy."

"Lots of cake-related emergencies at work?"

"More than you would think," Adrianne agreed. "You'd be surprised at how often a crisis involves baked goods."

She turned to face her more fully, toeing off her shoes and tucking her leg underneath herself as she said, "Full disclosure: your roommate came to talk to me a couple of days ago."

"Jensen?"

"I think he may have had an ulterior motive in snagging some free cupcakes," Adrianne said with a smile, "but the primary goal was definitely talking about you."

Gen gulped. "What did he tell you?"

"Not much," Adrianne admitted. "He said I would have to get all the gory details from you but was very emphatic that you were a good person." She picked at the label of the beer bottle. "He also said that life-threatening peril is par for the course?"

"Pretty much," Gen said miserably. "Jensen seems to attract it more than most but I have powers, y'know? People try to steal them or get me to use them for nefarious purposes on a semi-regular basis." She gave her an apologetic smile. "I guess I should probably have mentioned that over dinner."

"It would've been nice to know," Adrianne agreed. "I appreciate you being up front with me about the whole powers angle but it would've been good to know about you being a supervillain in the past."

Gen cringed. "Jensen told you?"

Adrianne shook her head. "Jensen wouldn't go into detail. 'Number one lesbian supervillain power couple' was a decent indicator though."

"Ah." Gen looked down. "If it helps, they have a pretty loose definition of supervillain? I never tried to wipe out a city or enslave mankind or anything like that."

"Well, I guess that's a good start," Adrianne said, taking a sip of beer. "How about walking me through what you did do?"

Adrianne's eyes stayed on her but Gen lowered her gaze to her lap as the familiar tension twisted through her stomach. She'd been through it before, for the police, for Jensen, for various other attempted relationships over the last eight years, but saying it out loud never got any easier.

"I, uh- I met a girl," she said lamely. "I was never really out as a teenager -- small town, rumor travels, all that -- and so when I met Alaina, it was kind of…"

"New?"

"Overwhelming," Gen said. "Exciting." She looked down at her hands. "Incredibly ill-fated."

"Did she have powers too?"

Gen nodded. "Fire. That's how we met -- I asked her for a light."

Adrianne smiled. "See, nothing good comes from smoking."

In spite of the nerves tangling inside her, Gen couldn't help but laugh. "Noted," she said. "I quit years ago, for the record." 

"What, smoking or supervillaining?"

"Both," Gen said. "I think supervillaining lasted a little longer than smoking."

"So what did supervillaining involve?" Adrianne asked. "What did you and Alaina do together?" Gen opened her mouth but Adrianne added with a tight smile, "The PG-13 version, please."

"Low level crime, mostly," Gen said. "We were young -- we weren't organized enough to build up anything too substantial -- but fear was the main thing. That's how we lasted so long -- we recruited people like Rosey and we made sure people were too intimidated to stop us. We didn't even need to do that much to back it up -- 'girls with superpowers' was enough to make people wary."

"Did you hurt people?" Adrianne asked, blunt and quiet, and Gen swallowed.

"Yeah," she said, familiar shame creeping through her. "Nothing permanent -- no killing or maiming or anything like that -- but yeah, I hurt people. I figured that if I could heal them right after, it was okay."

Adrianne raised her eyebrows and Gen said quickly, "I know it's not. I just-" She bit off the end of her sentence. A tricky childhood wasn't much of an excuse; plenty of people had it worse than she did and hadn't resorted to becoming a superpowered criminal mastermind. "I was dumb," she said instead. "And kind of a shitty person. I'm not going to pretend otherwise."

"And then what?" Adrianne asked, thankfully not storming out yet. "Did you see the light?"

"I don't know if you'd call it the light," Gen said, meeting her eyes. "I saw Alaina kill a guy. Right there in front of everyone like it was nothing."

"So you quit?"

"I turned them all in," Gen admitted. "There wasn't much left to quit after that. The DA gave me immunity for testifying against them and I hit the road as soon as they were locked up."

"Did they put you in witness protection?" Adrianne asked. "Is Gen even your real name?"

Gen smiled. "No witness protection. It's my real name -- I didn't lie about that." She folded her fingers together. "I know you don't have any reason to believe me but I didn't mean to lie about any of it. I swear, I would've told you everything eventually -- it just wasn't exactly the kind of conversation you have on the first date."

"I get it," Adrianne said. "Not that I regret peacing out as soon as there wasn't a giant hole in your roommate, but once I'd gotten some space, I figured that it was kind of unfair to expect you to share all your deep dark secrets the first time we had dinner."

"I was mostly hoping dinner would be followed by some thorough making out," Gen admitted. "The surprise hostage situation was not in my gameplan."

"But it happens?" Adrianne asked. "Hostage-taking, threats on your life, all that jazz?"

"With depressing regularity," Gen said with a sigh. "Me and Jensen, we're pretty good at taking care of ourselves now. It's never gone as far as it did with Rosey."

"Lots of peril, minimal actual injury?"

"My life in a nutshell." Narwhal came padding up for cuddles and Gen stroked him as she said, "It's not an everyday occurence. It can be months between incidents -- I think our record is just shy of a year -- but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a part of my life." 

Adrianne nodded, her brow furrowing, and Gen decided it was unfair not to give her the out. "Look, if you don't want to be involved in any of this, that's fine. It would be great if we could be friends, even just the kind of friends you sometimes make conversation with in the hallway, but if you'd rather keep your distance, I understand." She smiled weakly. "Hell, I'd probably recommend it."

Adrianne's smile was gentle. "I think I'll stay," she said, with just enough conviction to make Gen's heart leap in delight. "But I have conditions."

Gen's heart sank back down again when she narrowed her eyes. "Please tell me you're not going to try to blackmail me into sexual favors."

Adrianne blinked. "Does that happen?"

"Also with depressing regularity," Gen said. "Sorry, continue."

"No sexual favors," Adrianne said before reconsidering. "Okay, possibly sexual favors but of the blackmail-free variety." She leaned forward, setting her beer down. "I had a really good time at dinner the other night. I'm not gonna lie, the whole supervillain thing gave me pause but I- I think I'm up for giving this another shot." She gave an awkward little shrug. "I mean, assuming you still want to."

Gen tried very hard not to laugh at the idea that she wouldn't still want to date Adrianne. "Yeah," she said, aiming for suave and coming out somewhere closer to overexcited. "Yeah, I want to."

"But you need to be honest with me," Adrianne said. "I don't need to know about every little detail upfront but if there's something major going on, I'd expect you to tell me. This is never going to go anywhere if you wind up lying to me to try to protect me."

Gen nodded. "I understand."

"We need to be equals," Adrianne said. "Well, as much as we can be. I need to be able to defend myself if something like that happens again."

"Sure." Gen smiled. "You got some stealth karate skills I don't know about?"

Adrianne laughed. "Not exactly." She sat back on the couch, picking up her beer again. "You know how I said I was good at juggling?"

"Knives and cupcakes included," Gen said with a nod.

"Well, I'm also pretty great at throwing," Adrianne said. "Knives, that is. Not cupcakes."

"Huh." Gen took a sip of her own beer. "Were you raised in a carnival?" Adrianne laughed again and she held her hands up. "Not that I'm against that. I first got to second base on a tilt-a-whirl."

"Thank you for that nugget of information," Adrianne deadpanned. "But no, no secret carnie past. I just had a lot of trees to practice on when I was growing up." Her smile faded when she looked down at her beer bottle. "But I guess since you told me about your life of crime, I should tell you that I threw a knife at a guy one time."

Gen's eyebrows shot up.

"It was only his leg," Adrianne said quickly. "He tried to rob our house one night. I saw him point a gun at my sister so I-" She mimed a throw, complete with the squelchy noise of a knife landing in someone's thigh. "Y'know."

"Oh." Remembering the guy in the alley, Gen couldn't bring herself to be too concerned by it. "In that case, congrats on your choices. Remind me to rely on you for help in any future life threatening situations."

"It's kind of sad that you have to plan for those."

"Tell me about it." Setting her beer down, Gen asked tentatively, "So what happens now? Are we…?"

"Friends," Adrianne said, "who are hopefully going on their first date soon?" At Gen's frown, she said, "I mean, I had fun at dinner but with the whole hostage thing, I don't think that should mark the start of any relationship."

"Should we start again?" Gen said, holding her hand out with a smile. "Genevieve Cortese. Capricorn, veterinary nurse, ex-supervillain."

"Adrianne Palicki," Adrianne said, shaking her hand. "Taurus, baker, part-time knife thrower."

Adrianne's hand was warm against hers and Gen smiled as she let go. "I guess we should figure out where we want to go on a date."

"We should," Adrianne agreed, leaning back against the couch until her shoulder almost brushed Gen's. Her eyes lingered on Gen's lips and Gen couldn't keep her gaze from dropping down to the peek of cleavage visible under Adrianne's t-shirt. "We should pick a restaurant or a movie or something."

"Making out on my couch is definitely not an appropriate option," Gen agreed.

"Uh-huh." Adrianne's tongue darted out to lick her lips. "Not at all appropriate."

Gen's lips twitched in a smile. "Do you want to make out on my couch?"

"Absolutely."

The gap between them closed before either of them could second-guess it but when Adrianne caught Gen's lips in a kiss, Gen found that she was entirely satisfied with their decision. Despite all the uncertainty of the last couple of weeks, Adrianne's kiss was just as smooth and tempting as it had been on that first night, and Gen rested her hand on Adrianne's side as her lips parted to let her lick inside. Adrianne's tongue was soft and hot against hers and hopeful warmth blossomed in Gen's chest as she deepened the kiss. 

With Adrianne's hands on her hips, it was all too easy to rise up onto her knees and settle astride Adrianne's lap, and Gen licked at Adrianne's lips with a smile when she felt her hands slide down to settle on her ass. Adrianne's curls brushed her cheeks as their lips stayed locked together and Gen couldn't keep her hips from sliding forward when Adrianne gave her ass a knowing squeeze.

When they finally broke for air, Adrianne's cheeks were flushed and Gen smiled in embarrassment as she sat back. "So much for taking it slow."

"Hey, we agreed to start again," Adrianne pointed out. "We never said anything about going slow." Her gaze slid past Gen and her smile widened. "But maybe we should pump the breaks until we've actually had that date. I feel like your cat's judging me for not buying you dinner first."

Laughing, Gen climbed off her lap to look over to where Manatee was staring at them from his perch by the TV. "That could be a good idea," she said. "I think he likes you, though. He hasn't tried to gnaw off your toes or anything."

"Gee, thanks for telling me that was a possibility," Adrianne teased, leaning in for another quick kiss. "I guess I should get going. I've got an early shift tomorrow."

"You free for dinner tomorrow?" Gen asked, pushing herself to her feet to see Adrianne to the door. "Same time, same place, fewer life threatening injuries?" 

Adrianne laughed. "Sure. A Friday night first date seems nice and normal." She dipped down to kiss her again, deep and gentle, and Gen steadied herself on the wall with a dazed smile when they broke apart. "See you tomorrow."

"See you," Gen said with a stupidly happy little wave. 

Adrianne headed back upstairs, pink-cheeked and smiling, and Gen slumped back against the door with a sigh of relief. Satisfied that no-one was watching (and that Manatee would keep it to himself), she allowed herself a flail of delight in celebration of her newfound success at relationship navigation. 

Maybe Thursdays weren't the worst after all.

_Six months later_

Lightning split the sky as the rain came down in sheets over the darkened city. Shouts and cries echoed through the streets, ricocheting up between the buildings, and Gen settled her dark cloak around her shoulders as she watched with a smile on her lips and a knife in her hand.

"Wow, that's not creepy at all," Adrianne said from behind her. 

Despite the sarcasm, she was smiling when Gen turned back to look at her. "You're supposed to be reformed now, remember?" Adrianne pointed out. "You look like you're plotting the death of thousands."

"I'm not plotting," Gen said, peering down out of the windows to where people in costume were laughing and shrieking as they ran from doorway to doorway. "I'm just observing. And being grateful that we're inside."

Adrianne's skin was still damp from the rain when she rested her hands on Gen's hips and kissed her neck. It was dark enough outside to see their reflection in the window and Gen smiled at the sight of Adrianne's messy curls and the smudges of eyeliner on her own cheeks. "I maintain that the Big Bad Wolf was kind of on the nose."

"Maybe," Adrianne said, kissing the corner of her jaw as she smoothed her hands down the curve of Gen's corset top. "But I make an excellent Red Riding Hood, so you'll just have to live with it."

Smiling, Gen turned to push Adrianne's (largely ineffective) hood back as she leaned up to kiss her. The plastic knife in her hand was an unwanted inconvenience and she tossed it to the floor, narrowly avoiding a disgruntled Manatee as she hooked her fingers in the laces on the front of Adrianne's shirt.

"I still don't think the wolf traditionally had a knife," Adrianne pointed out.

"It's Halloween," Gen said. "I can be knife-wielding wolf if I want." Her wolf nose makeup left a mark on Adrianne's cheek which she wiped off with her thumb. "Jensen left the house dressed as a slutty taco. If you're going to judge anyone, it should definitely be him."

Adrianne looked faintly disturbed. "I'm really glad I missed that."

"As you should be," Gen said with a shiver. "Count yourself lucky that you're just dating a wolf instead." 

Her cloak fell away easily once the tie was loosened and Gen rose up on tiptoes as Adrianne's hands slid down to her ass. Her skirt was more of an idea than an actual piece of clothing and she looped her arms around Adrianne's neck as Adrianne's hands inched higher.

"This is kind of inappropriate," Gen said between kisses. "I'm pretty sure the wolf isn't supposed to sleep with Little Red Riding Hood."

"Your roommate is dressed as a taco," Adrianne said. "Out of the two of you, you will definitely be having the most appropriate sex tonight."

"You know that's a really low bar, right?"

Adrianne smiled against her lips. "Of course, we could always just go to sleep. It's been a long day."

"We could," Gen agreed. "I mean, it's not like I spent twenty minutes lacing myself into this thing in the hopes that you'd be taking it off tonight."

Laughing, Adrianne kissed her again as she slid her hands up to rest on her waist. "Well, in that case, I'd hate to disappoint." She ducked her head to kiss along Gen's jaw as she said, "Bedroom?"

"Your best idea yet," Gen said with a grin. 

Stumbling through to the bedroom, it didn't take long for Gen to get out of her shirt, stockings and skirt but she left the corset in place as she settled back on the bed to watch Adrianne finish stripping down. The costume was somewhere between that of a milkmaid and a schoolgirl and Gen was a little embarrassed by how turned on she was by it. 

The skirt was flared, fanning up around Adrianne's thighs, and Gen watched in tipsy appreciation as Adrianne peeled off her panties before going to work on the laces fastened across her breasts. 

"This is taking too long," Gen complained and Adrianne laughed as she stepped out of her costume. 

"I'm so sorry," she teased, unhooking her bra and climbing onto the bed. "I'll do better at getting naked next time."

"Damn straight," Gen said, sitting back as Adrianne crawled to settle astride her lap. Her make-up was still smeared from the rain but she was gorgeous as she ran her fingers through Gen's hair to pull her into a kiss. 

It was rougher than Gen expected, hot and needy and slick, and she kissed back with enthusiasm as she let Adrianne ride her down until she was flat on her back on the bed. The corset was tight around her torso, pushing her tits up and together, and she arched her back as much as it would allow as she cupped Adrianne's bare breasts with a sigh.

Adrianne didn't let up, nuzzling along Gen's jaw as she tapped Gen's thighs with her feet. After a night of partying and alcohol, she wasn't coordinated enough to do much more but Gen got the message anyway as she spread her legs wider for Adrianne's access. 

Sitting back, Adrianne hooked her fingers in Gen's black panties and gave her thigh a playful pat. "You're wearing way too many clothes."

Gen laughed, lifting her hips to let Adrianne work her panties off. "I'm wearing literally two things."

"Like I said," Adrianne teased, settling on top of her again, "way too many."

Her smile was mischievous and Gen tipped her head back with a sigh when Adrianne's hand moved between her thighs. Her fingers were still cool from the rainy dash back home from the party and Gen shivered happily as she ran her hand down Gen's pussy before resting her thumb on her clit and her fingers at her entrance. 

The angle wasn't good enough to return the favor and so Gen settled back on the pillows with a moan as Adrianne kissed her way up her neck, rubbing her thumb over her clit with confidence. Her hands were bigger than Gen's, her fingers a little longer and a little thicker, and Gen bit her lip with a smile as Adrianne worked two, then three of those talented fingers inside her.

"You good?" Adrianne asked, scraping her teeth over Gen's collarbone.

"Very," Gen said past a moan. Adrianne's hair spilled down over her shoulders and Gen raked her fingers through her curls as she coaxed her down for a kiss. "Although I'm pretty sure the wolf is supposed to be on top."

Adrianne's smile widened. "That right?" She pushed her fingers in deeper as Gen rolled her hips up. "Why, Ms Wolf, what nice eyes you have."

Gen laughed. "Really?"

"Hey, you're the one complaining about historical accuracy." She frowned. "Or fairytale accuracy. You know what I mean."

Rolling her eyes, Gen played along. "All the better to see you with?"

"And what nice hands you have."

Gen helpfully shifted her hands down to squeeze Adrianne's tits, catching her nipples between her thumbs and forefingers as she breathed out at the steady stimulation to her clit. "All the better to touch you with."

Adrianne's smile grew wicked as she leaned in to whisper against Gen's lips. "What a goddamn pretty mouth you have."

"All the better-" She caught on a second too late and smirked as she finished, "-to eat you with."

"So kind of you to offer," Adrianne teased. 

Giving her clit a final tap with her thumb, she slid her fingers out of Gen's pussy and crawled up Gen's body. Gen kissed whatever she could reach -- lips, shoulders, breasts, stomach -- and worked her way down from her belly button eagerly as Adrianne moved up to plant her knees either side of Gen's head. 

Gen could taste her even before she opened her mouth and she curled her hands around Adrianne's thighs as Adrianne hesitated, "You okay with-"

She got her answer in the press of Gen's lips against her clit as Gen pulled her down to bury her face happily in her pussy. She was wet already, slickness smearing over Gen's chin and lips, but there was always room for improvement as Gen licked along her pussy before focusing her attention on her clit once Adrianne settled in place. 

Adrianne's hand caught in her hair, fingers curling with a hint of nerves even as she held Gen's mouth to her pussy, and Gen sucked gently on her clit to reassure that she was into this as much as Adrianne was. (Despite her supervillain-ish tendencies, she was more than happy to give up control between the sheets sometimes.)

She could feel it when Adrianne's hand relaxed, fingers twisted through Gen's hair, and she breathed past the press of the corset as she flicked the tip of her tongue over Adrianne's clit quickly enough to make Adrianne's thighs tremble. Reaching around to cup Adrianne's ass, she alternated licking and sucking, flattening her tongue against her clit and circling as much as she could while Adrianne's moans grew louder above her. She wasn't close enough to coming but from the way Adrianne began to grind down against her, she was definitely getting there.

"Wait," Adrianne gasped. 

Gen shivered as soon as she lifted up, her slickness cooling on her skin, and looked up past the curve of Adrianne's breasts to meet her eyes. "You okay?"

"I'm good," Adrianne said, stroking her fingers through Gen's hair. "Just worried about reciprocating. Hold on."

Reaching out to balance herself on the headboard, she shifted her knees to one side of Gen's head. Gen stayed still in confusion but quickly caught on when Adrianne moved back into place astride her head so that she was facing down Gen's body. Her knee caught Gen's hair and Gen winced as Adrianne lifted up again with the hasty apology, "Fuck, fuck, sorry."

"I'm good," Gen promised, pushing her hair back as Adrianne settled into place above her again. She gave her ass a light grope as she pointed out, "I like how you pick the time when we're both pretty drunk to try adventurous positions."

"Shut up," Adrianne said good-naturedly, resting her hands on the bed and peering down between their bodies at Gen. "See, we're there now. Mission accomplished." She ducked her head lower until Gen lost sight of her and pressed a soft kiss to Gen's already sensitive clit. "Unless you want me to keep my mouth to myself?"

The question was followed by a slow, hard suck on Gen's clit and Gen bucked upwards with a helpless moan. "God, okay," Gen said breathlessly. "No keeping. Do more of that thing."

She felt Adrianne laugh as she kissed her thigh but her lips and tongue were soon back on Gen's clit, licking over it again and again as she held her thighs open. In their new position, it was an easy stretch to her goal and Gen took a moment to adapt to the inversion, the slip of her nose rather than her chin against Adrianne's pussy, before catching Adrianne's clit again.

With Adrianne's mouth on her own pussy, it was hard enough to concentrate on the task at hand and so Gen couldn't manage more coordination than working a couple of fingers in and out of her. Her thrusts were uneven but judging by the needy cant of Adrianne's hips, the pressure against her clit was more than sufficient. 

Lit up by the pleasure buzzing through her, Gen hummed happily against Adrianne as she rocked her hips up into the touch. The corset was still tight around her waist and chest but the restrictive pull only seemed to heighten the building tension as the hot press of Adrianne's lips coaxed her closer to the edge.

After a night of drinking and dancing, Gen's self-control wasn't at its peak but with her face buried in Adrianne's pussy and Adrianne's tongue working at her clit, it was even harder to hold out.

Fortunately, Adrianne seemed to be having the same problem.

She cried out, fingertips pressing into Gen's thighs, and she gasped against Gen's clit as she came hard. Gen could feel it on her tongue, could feel the clench of Adrianne's pussy around her fingers and the shudder of her thighs beside her head, and she kept licking with enthusiasm as Adrianne trembled through wave after wave of it.

The sounds of her moans were muffled by the thighs bracketing Gen's head and Gen smiled at Adrianne mouthed at her, trying to get her there too even as she panted through the aftermath of her orgasm. It was easy enough to reach down, sliding her fingers out of Adrianne's pussy and slipping between Adrianne's lips and her own skin to give herself that final bit of friction she needed.

Her release flared bright and hot inside her, rattling through her body at speed, and Gen arched beneath Adrianne's body as she finally came. It was strong enough to snatch her breath away and Gen couldn't do much more than gasp soundlessly as she rode out every last pulse.

Adrianne rolled off before Gen could pull herself together enough to speak and she looked over with a dazed smile as Adrianne said, half-chiding, "You know I would've got you there."

"I know you would," Gen said, buzzing and exhausted at the same time. "I just figured I'd help you out."

Adrianne smiled, planting a kiss just above Gen's knee. "So impatient."

"But so happy," Gen said, stretching her arms above her head with a pleased sigh. The corset kept her from being as boneless as she would've liked and it was with a groan of effort that she levered herself up and off the bed. 

Adrianne pouted, her face pink and messy. "Gee, Cortese, way to run out on me."

Gen laughed, arching as much as the corset allowed. "You're not getting rid of me that easily." She patted her stomach. "Let me go get out of this and clean up and I'll be right back."

"You want help?" Adrianne asked, propping herself up on an elbow.

"I'm good," Gen promised, grinning when Adrianne flopped back onto the bed with a noise of sleepy gratitude. "I'll be two minutes. Try to leave me some mattress to sleep on."

"I make no guarantees," Adrianne mumbled, shifting back up to the pillows then sprawling across the bed like a very attractive starfish. 

Pausing at the door, Gen saw her swipe a kleenex over her face and then burrow into the pillows and blankets. The rain hammered down outside, beating against the windows, but the warmth in her chest stayed constant as she listened to Adrianne's breathing even out into tiny snores. 

For a former supervillain with an occasionally perilous personal life, Gen figured she'd done pretty damn well for herself. (Snores or no snores.)


End file.
